Whether you’re looking to save some money for a short term expense or you’re thinking long-term and creating an emergency fund, here are some simple tips that’ll be sure to help your bank account feel stronger than ever before without necessarily ditching your morning latte.
1. Closely Examine Your Spending Habits
It’s hard to know how you can save some money without knowing where it’s going. Budgeting is all about knowing where every penny is going well before you spend it. There are great free apps available, and your bank may even have some helpful tools that you already have access to on their site.
2. Find Creative Ways To Avoid Unexpected Or Recurring Fees
Many new mobile banks not only offer accounts without any fees but also protect you from overdraft fees. There’s nothing worse than losing money on random, unexpected fees being taken out of your account. Between overdraft, maintenance, service, foreign transaction, and many more different fees people often find themselves unexpectedly paying, cutting these out can have a large and lasting impact. Anyway to help your wallet grow and save you a lot of extra cash in the long run and help you reach your savings goals faster.
3. Always Capitalize On Cash Back And Coupons
If you’re shopping online or going to a restaurant, sometimes that junk mail you instinctively throw away can save serious cash. Many smaller grocery stores send out coupons which can add up to saving a ton of money on your next shopping trip. There are also sites like Rakuten that will find the most amount of cashback possible on every purchase. If you’re going to be spending money, you might as well earn some extra back!
4. Buy Store Brand When You Can
Often times chains will have the same product as name brand goods but with a different name on the packaging. A useful tip for spotting this is if the packaging design and material are the same between the name brand and store brand product. There are some exceptions, but for the most part, you’ll get the same product at a lower cost.
5. Only Buy In Bulk When It Makes Sense
There is nothing worse than buying too much of one thing and having it go bad before you can use it. Throwing food away is a waste for everyone and your wallet. That being said, there are times when buying in bulk is well worth it. Pasta and rice hold up for a long time and make for easy meals to take with you for lunch to save even more throughout the week.
6. Shopping Local Can Save Money And Improve Quality
Regional markets are the best way to get the freshest food possible at the best prices possible. They are a great way to find out where your food comes from and support local farms and businesses. Not only is the food high quality, but you can also find great deals by (occasionally) haggling or building up a rapport with the vendors when you’re buying larger quantities of goods.
7. Make Cooking At Home A Hobby
Now that you know where to get high-quality ingredients, turning them into high-quality food is the next step. Whether you bought groceries with a recipe in mind or wanted to turn what you already have into a meal, cooking is a skill that can always be improved. Some of the best meals come from creating your own ideas and not using a recipe.
8. Stream Or Rent A Movie For Date Night
There are movies and TV shows that everyone says are a must-see, and there is no better time to watch them than date night. Between the collection of streaming services the library of media to watch is always changing. Even a Redbox rental is an inexpensive way to watch the latest releases.
9. Shop Online For More Competitive Prices
Everything from paper towels to snacks can often be found online for better prices. Browser extensions like Honey will try various coupon codes at checkout to get the best prices it can. Anyone who has shopped on Amazon before knows that the prices can fluctuate overnight. The browser extension CamelCamelCamel checks price history and will tell you if it is a good or bad time to buy a specific product.
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